"I Had Christmas Down in Africa!"

I thought I should get in a December post before the New Year, which is about 12 hours from now.  Summer is very nice here, but unfortunately our pool does not have a heater and only seems to get up to 76F during the day.  Miranda was the only brave one to get in.  But luckily everyone in our neighborhood has a pool in their garden so it is easy to find someone with a heater.

Miranda has been off of school since December 5th and will go back for the new year starting January 9th.  It is weird seeing Christmas decorations and back-to-school supplies in the store at the same time.  She's been enjoying her time off and will be in a new class when they resume.  Jackson is getting more and more teeth and is now up to 10 with 2 more getting ready to pop through.  I'm almost 100% positive he's slightly allergic to peanut butter, and after scratching his legs raw, we found a laundry detergent he's not allergic to.

We now have a Comedy Central channel, but all it shows are old sitcoms like "3rd Rock From the Sun", "My Wife and Kids", "8 Simple Rules", and "Northern Exposure".  It's very disappointing.  You can catch a South Park episode once in awhile, but I think SA's interpretation of comedy is a little different than ours.

Since we did not do Christmas gifts for family back home this year, we adopted our gardener, maid, and her family.  We filled a backpack with goodies and toiletries for our gardener as well as purchasing a new pair of sneakers.  Since he speaks very limited English, it was hard to tell if he liked it or not.  For our maid, we filled 2 pink backpacks with dolls, coloring books, and candy for her 2 granddaughters, a Cars themed one for her son, and duffel bags with spa-like goodies for her and her daughter along with a set of dishes.  She went home for 3 weeks as do most of the helpers in the neighborhood.  Apparently our neighbors have been gone as well and they left their dogs in the backyard.  One of them sleeps all day and barks all night.  After 2 weeks of non-stop barking we finally got security to come and tell the maid to put the dogs in the house.  I  can't believe how inconsiderate and negligent some people in this world can be.

Miranda and Jackson sat on Santa's lap at the Sandton City mall and you could buy a 5x7 picture for $4.  There were no tears and the photo turned out great!  We then went to the Smurf village and watched a live show.  There were some tears when Gargamel was on stage.  Lunch was spectacular since the food court had a Schlotzsky's and Cinnabon.

Christmas was very nice here with our South African family.  We spent the eve at church with about 5 other families and then headed over to another's house for cookie decorating and sparklers.  We were able to Skype with both sets of grandparents Christmas morning as it was 7am here and 11pm there.  Miranda has been enjoying playing with all her new Squinkies, Jackson's giant ball pit, and my new iPad2.  We had dinner that evening with more friends and excellent food.  We never did get that Christmas 'feeling' this year since we've never spent it in such a warm environment.  But we put up a tree and other festive decorations, watched Christmas movies, and listened to holiday music.  Have you ever noticed that most of the songs sing about it being cold and snowy?  Kind of weird hearing that over the speaker at World of Golf while you're practicing your swings.

Shopping the day after Christmas was a very pleasant event.  They do not have any special sales so the stores were not crowded.  A lot of businesses close down from Christmas until after New Years here because most people go on vacation.  It makes it hard to run errands or find a restaurant to go to on your anniversary.  But we found a nice Italian place and were able to get great service since we were two of only about 10 people in the whole restaurant.

Our landlords called to wish us "happy holidays" while they were on their way to their beach house just south of Durban.  How many houses do these people have?  They spend weekends at their Kudu game ranch a few hours from here.  But they won the award for 'nicest landlords ever' when they said "you can use our cabin on the beach whenever you want."  Say what?  

Black Tuesday

Didn't realize it's been over 2 weeks since my last post.  Whoops!

We finally took our first weekend trip to Sun City a few weeks ago.  Rusty and I rode the longest, fastest Zip Slide in the world that was actually sponsored by Garmin, so I felt safe.  The next day was spent at the water park "Valley of the Waves" and the hotel pools.  There is so much child care here that we were able to drop the kids off at a babysitting place while we did the zip slide, then we hired a sitter to come to our room and put the kids to bed while we caught a little musical show at the hotel.  $11/hr was worth it!  Room service was very reasonable as well and was easier than venturing out with 2 kids 3x a day to find food.  Unfortunately Jackson had a fever the entire weekend and cried all night long, so we'll have to go back.  The hotels were busy setting up for the Nedbank Golf Challenge which begins today.  Lee Westwood and Tim Clark are currently in the lead.  The day we left there was a triathalon taking place on the grounds and surrounding area.  It was a lot warmer in Sun City than in JoBurg and only a 2 1/2 hour drive away.  The scenery between cities was a bit scary as there really wasn't anywhere to stop.  We drove by several makeshift townships and am just in shock at how many thousands of people live like that because they have no other choice.

Jackson ended up having tonsillitis and started feeling much better after getting on antibiotics.  He's also trying to get more teeth.  Now both kids have a horrible cough and runny nose, and Rusty's been fighting a small fever for the past 5 days.  It never ends!!!  We've been told by several people that everyone gets sick a lot the first 6 months after you move here.  We hit that mark on the 19th, so we'll see if that theory is actually true.

We have a couple of rodent visitors in the master bathroom on the ledge up by the roof.  The rat was confirmed one night and the mouse was caught on Thanksgiving.  Poison and steel wool will be put in place very soon.  I also had to kill another giant cricket using Rusty's pitching wedge.  Rusty used his engineering skills to build some screens for a few of the windows since they don't exist here.  Now we can keep them open all night without worrying about getting bit by mosquitoes.  Moths have made their way in and according to Miranda they are the scariest thing she's ever seen, so she is now the proud owner of a princess mosquito net that surrounds her bed.

I bought some real ice cream, not the kind made with vegetable fat, but it still just wasn't the same.  But there's some good stuff we got at the Montecasino last weekend when we went to a kid's fair.  I am also missing chocolate candy with peanut butter.  There just isn't any here!  Don't these people realize how good it is?  I have resulted to dipping my chocolate bars in a jar of peanut butter.

Thanksgiving was lovely as we had about 18 friends over for dinner.  Since the turkeys here are not genetically altered with steroids, I had to cook two.  We had all the traditional foods, but it still felt like it was just 'pretend' Thanksgiving.  The next day I put up the tree and all the Christmas decorations while wearing shorts and a tank top.  Weird.

The school year is over on Friday and Miranda will be in a new class when classes resume in January.  She will be the 'big kid' at her preschool as the oldest class will be starting kindergarten.

The dryer blew up on Monday but luckily I have wonderful neighbors who let me use theirs.  The air is also very dry here so it's easy to put things outside to air dry.  We had a day where we didn't have electricity for 8 hours, and that turned out to be a lot easier than the 4 hours we were without water one evening.

We went to the organic market last night with our neighbors and their friends for dinner and candlelight shopping.  The rain scared a lot of people away but we sought shelter in an empty booth and enjoyed wine and beer until it stopped.  The artists have started making religious-themed items and I now have a hand-carved wooden nativity set as well as a beaded Christmas tree and sterling silver cross pendant.  Sure beats Black Friday!  Which they don't have here, but they did have "Black Tuesday" which has to do with the newspaper media and a bill called the "Protection of State Information Bill".  Google It.

Hey?

Halloween here was similar, yet different than back home.  First, it is not celebrated on Halloween but on the Saturday before, so we spent the actual Halloween night carving pumpkins to get a little in the spirit (we were able to find orange ones at the local store, only $11 each!) .  Our estate had festivities on the 29th that started in the main park with a magician, then trick-or-treating around the neighborhoods.  We walked several miles over a period of about 2 hours and got candy from maybe 20 houses.  I was surprised at the quality of candy that was handed out.  I don't mean to sound spoiled and ungrateful, but Halloween in the US has caused me to be this way.  Most of the candy Miranda collected consisted of suckers, small pieces of hard candy, and marshmallows.  I had to throw a lot of it out because it's not like she got a small package of marshmallows or a snack-sized bag of yogurt gummies, people actually opened the bags and you were allowed to pick two.  Really?  She only got one small chocolate bar, and that was from one of the American's house.  But we had a lot of fun with our friends, and the best house was the one giving out beer to the parents (thanks Anne!).  I bought myself a Snickers and Twix bar the next day to satisfy my craving, so it's all good.     

There is a GYNORMOUS neighborhood being build just down the road from us and they had an open house last weekend to show off their almost-finished clubhouse.  Oh.My.GOSH!  I want to live there.  It was a lovely evening and we enjoyed a picnic with our neighbors.  There were several little bonfires and marshmallow toasting.  I told my friend all I needed was a Hershey's bar and some graham crackers.  These were foreign words to her and I attempted to explain what smores are.  I had no idea this wasn't a world-wide treat.  Also at the picnic they had a story teller, fire dancers, a band, and a DJ.  At the end of the evening, we all got to send off fire lanterns into the sky, similar to the ones in 'Tangled' but bigger.  It was the coolest thing to see 600 of them floating away.   

I'm still getting a hang of the 'lingo' here.  One of the hardest is when someone tells me I "must" do something.  This is a little offensive in the states for someone to say this to you, but here's it's just a way of speaking.  At home, we would replace the word with 'need' or 'should'.  People also like to say "hey" at the end of sentences a lot.  Like how the Canadians say 'Eh' at the end of their phrases.  "It's a beautiful day, hey?"  "You want to go to the store with me, hey?"  "Shame" is a big one too, inserted where we would say "that's too bad."  

I am happy that Summer is FINALLY here as I have been waiting 14 months for it.  Seeing how I left Kansas just as Spring was starting only to get here and have Winter just beginning, it's been a long time coming.  Strawberries, watermelon, blueberries, and grapes are in season.  Yea!!! 

En ingles, por favor!

Now that my dad has returned home, we are ready for the next visitor!  The weather was great for the rest of his trip and we were able to go out and do a lot of "Africa" things.  We went to the Montecasino and looked for the guards who hide in the shadows with machine guns, but we still can't find them.  After a croissant in a cafe, we headed to the Bird Gardens which were a little more alive than when we went back in July because now it's spring.  A stork had laid an egg and was busy tending to the nest.  The following day we headed to the Elephant Sanctuary near Harbeespoort Dam.  After 2 1/2 hours spent learning all about elephants, touching them, and walking with them, we enjoyed a buffet overlooking the sanctuary.  The next day we drove to the Rhino and Lion Park.  We spent some time petting the baby lions and walking around the park.  You can drive your car around the wild life area and watch the feedings.  The truck that delivered the food had a system: stay in the truck while feeding the lions, only put your arm out the window to throw the chain over the log, then pull away so the dead animal falls out the back.  Although the lion decided to just pull the animal out the back of the truck himself.  Then the truck drove to the area with the wild dogs.  The feeder got out of the truck and was running around with the dogs, then just threw the food off the back.  For the cheetahs, he stayed in the bed of the truck and threw the food high in the air and the cheetahs jumped up to catch it.  The only Rhino we saw was way up on the hill as we were exiting the park.  We definitely had our fill of animals after that.

We did a couple of shopping trips to two different types of markets.  Bryanstan Organic Market is located outside and the booths are set up like a craft fair.  It reminds me of the Apple Festival I used to attend at Ward Meade Park in Topeka.  We were able to pick up a few souvenirs before enjoying a lunch of spinach & feta quiche with salad and chocolate croissants to go (they call it 'take-away' here).  I will never eat croissants from a can ever again.  Rosebank market has the same sort of merchandise, just in a larger scale, and most items do not have a price tag because you can bargain.  It is located on the top floor of the mall's parking garage.  We ran into some Americans there, one from California who is living here for a few years for her husband's job, and another two from Maryland who were also here for work, but just for a few days.

Miranda has started swimming lessons and they aren't going very well.  She is very scared and screams and cries a lot.  We've only been to two lessons so hopefully it will get better.  Her school had a concert a couple of weeks ago and her group dressed up like walruses and sang a song.  She was so unhappy and didn't like her costume, and I hardly blame her when I saw what all the other kids got to wear.  Who wants to wear brown when the others get to be bunnies and fairies?  Oh well, she gets to be Ariel for Halloween.  I actually found orange pumpkins at the grocery store yesterday.  They are rare here, and no trips to the pumpkin patch.  Jackson has another tooth, so that makes 7 total.

We had yet another wave of sickness go through the house.  Miranda was battling a 100-102 degree fever for 5 days, then she got pink eye.  Then Jackson got it.  It's been so fun trying to hold his eyes open while I attempt to put in eye drops.  I thought the rain was supposed to wash away all this sickness, but all it did was prove to me that rain spiders know how to get in my house.  I've only had one, but it was absolutely horrifying!  Apparently they eat lizards, so the little one in the garage that keeps hissing at me better watch out.

We went to Gold Reef City amusement park this weekend and it's like Worlds of Fun, only smaller.  It's located on an old gold mine next to Johannesburg, and there's a tour you can take where you can see a gold-containing ore vein.  We didn't have time for the tour.  In the park they have a couple of hotels, and the live shows of 'Idols South Africa' are filmed in the auditorium.  The park was about $50 for the 4 of us.  We pretty much stayed in the kiddie corner, and there were two areas that we didn't even get to go to.  The Apartheid museum is just across the street.  It was sad to drive by Johannesburg and see the ruins of large buildings that were once grand.  After apartheid ended in '94, crime settled in and most of the businesses moved out to Sandton City, which is now the wealthiest city in Africa.

I decided this weekend that I really do despise a few of my neighbors.  Especially the ones next door who let their dog bark non-stop for 45 minutes at 6:30am.  And the ones behind me who let their gardener mow at 6am.  And definitely the ones across the street who have huge parties that last way past midnight where I can hear every word of every song in my bedroom.  The only thing that keeps me from egging their houses is knowing that they won't be my neighbors in less than 2 years, and if they ever did anything like this back home, I could call the police and they would be fined and/or arrested for disturbing the peace.

I seriously still cannot understand some of the people here.  Clearly I can't understand what they are saying since I keep saying 'sorry' and 'I don't understand what you are saying' so you'd think they'd slow down or speak louder.  Nope.  They are in fact speaking English, but the Afrikkan accent is so strong that I feel like they're speaking a different language.  There are dozens of languages here, but Spanish is not one of them.  Oh how I wish I could speak Spanish fluently, just to mess with them.  I'm about to whip out all the words I do know the next time I can't understand them and see how THEY feel.  
 

It's Raining In My House

We had another week of sickness but I finally have my allergies under control and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Jackson's ear infection does not flare up again.  Jackson had his first trip to the emergency room a couple of weeks ago after falling in the bath.  He cut open his forehead, but luckily some friends came over just after the incident and taped it up, so the doctor said he wouldn't need stitches.  It is healing nicely and I'm hoping there won't be much of a scar.  Miranda has been injuring herself a lot lately, it's starting to be a bit like the little boy who cried wolf.  She's full of bruises and scrapes after falling outside on the rocks, getting a blister at preschool and tripping over a friend, then falling down the stairs because she was hopping down to try to favor one of her injuries.  I've heard the word 'ow-wee' so many times this past week I'm immune to it.

The air basically has 2 smells:  flowers, or poop/sewer/trash.  It all depends on which way the wind blows.  Since it is spring here, all the flowers are starting to bloom and there are a lot!  It's very beautiful and the weather is outstanding.  I'm wondering if it will ever get hot enough to use the pool.

My dad arrived safely with all his luggage.  He adjusted well to the time change and was able to get over his jet-lag in only 2 days.  About 15 hours after his arrival, we had Jackson's 1st birthday party at our house.  We celebrated with about 40 friends and neighbors and Jackson performed well when  it was time for him to smash his cake.  The kids had fun on the jumping castle and running around the yard.  I made 2 batches of cupcakes and ordered trays of fruit, cheese, and breakfast breads from a local grocery.  I think it all went perfectly!

My dad brought with him the rainy season.  Saturday we got our first downpour, along with some hail, and then our roof started leaking.  It was like is was raining in my house because we would just walk around and get dripped on.  There are about 7 spots in the roof that are leaking, one in each room.  We strategically placed about 14 containers around to catch the drips.  They were used again the next night when it decided to storm again.  I'm glad we don't have to pay to get them fixed!

Our trip to Durban is being postponed until November because there just wasn't a time where it was going to work out.  We plan on doing all the local touristy-stuff while my dad is here, and there is a lot.  We've done a bit of shopping and he is becoming familiar with the parking lot attendants who help you find a spot.  I don't know how I'm going to back out of a parking spot without someone guiding me when I get home.  ;-)

WTF is THAT?!?!

It's been quite a couple of weeks.  First Miranda got sick, again, with a 103.8 fever all day Monday, then 100 the next day.  She was perfectly fine on Wednesday.  Had a visit to the doctor for a possible ear infection with Jackson but it wasn't severe enough for medication although I don't think he has gotten any better.  Then I visited the doctor 2 days later for a sinus infection and I don't think my medicine has done anything because 5 days later, I'm still miserable.  I've been told I just have to wait until the rain comes and it will wash everything away.  It has only rained twice since we've been here, and it has now been 4 months.  There is still a lot of field burning and the wind has picked up.  At home I would just shut the house up and turn on the a/c, but that is not an option here.  I'm grateful that all my allergy prescriptions I had back home are available here, now if only they would start working!

On top of all the sickness last week, my washing machine broke during the rinse cycle so I got water everywhere when I opened up the door which is on the front of the machine.  Thankfully I have nice neighbors who let me bring my dripping wet towels over for a spin cycle.  But then Miranda decided to get sick all over everything so I did my best effort at hand-washing until I could get a load over to another neighbor who let me use their machine at 8pm.  I did not get a new washer until 4 days later, and it is so teeny tiny, I didn't know they made them that small!  But, a tiny washer is better than no washer at all.  I have had a lot of practice with it as I sent my maid home to take care of her family while they arranged a funeral for her daughter's husband-boyfriend... not really sure.  I believe he had an aneurysm and passed away from surgery complications.  I had a lot of people offer their maid to me or someone they know of that needs work, but we managed just fine by ourselves, and I even figured out what to feed the gardener although I gave him all the stuff to make his own tea because I'm not quite used to 'tea time.'

Miranda decided she wanted short hair on Thursday night.  She apparently forgot our discussion that scissors are for cutting paper, not hair.  I noticed a big matted clump on the table next to a wad of white hair.  I guess her stuffed dog needed a haircut too.  It could have been worse, but she now has bangs and the rest goes just past her ears.  It's pretty cute, but I was devastated.  Just before we moved here her bangs had finally grown out to be as long as the rest of her hair and I was going to see how long we could grow it before returning home.  Not going to happen.  And I think the bangs might stay because now her hair stays out of her eyes and it's perfect for summer which is right around the corner.

So I've figured out that my Africa catch-phrase is "What the f--- IS that?!" as I seem to utter these words at least once a week.  This week it was in regards to new bugs in my house I've never seen before.  It also pertains to bird calls that are super-loud and I've never heard before, or types of food that I see in the store.  Prawn-flavoured potato chips?  Ostrich jerky?  I wasn't aware there was such a plethora of Ostrich here that they could make jerky out of them.

With the weather getting warmer I am liking my house a lot more.  We are lucky to have a thatch-roof as the breeze blows through it and it doesn't get too hot.  We also have a lot of vegetation surrounding the house so there is an abundance of shade.  It's peaceful and secluded.

We are trying to plan a trip to Durban on Jackson's birthday but are having troubles getting a place to stay.  It is about a 7-hour drive SE from us.  We still have a few weeks, so hopefully we'll find something soon.  Miranda still likes preschool and has a couple of friends in school and outside of school that she has really taken a liking to.  Her South-African accent appeared yesterday at the park while we were sitting on a bench next to the pond.  "Water" came out as 'wuh-tuh'.  I asked her to say it again and she said it the 'American' way, but I'm sure that's just the beginning.  I am unable to do too much exploring during the week as Jackson keeps me on my toes whenever I leave the house.  Shopping carts (trolleys) do not have seat belts and he is constantly trying to climb out.  Everyone has a pool at their house, and he makes a bee-line to it every time.

My dad will be here in 11 days.  Soooooo excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No Shoes Required

I finally made it back to the gym and tried out the pool.  I had it all to myself, and it was heated.  With Jackson in the child care room, I was able to shower and get myself ready for the day, then sit in the cafe area and enjoy a banana/lemon smoothie before picking him up.  Lemons have become my new staple here since all the lemons on my tree are starting to ripen.  I have made lemon 'bread' several times, which to me seems to be more like a cake, and is now a family favorite.

On the subject of food, the stores here lack a lot of processed foods which I have realized is the way I used to cook all the time back home.  I have had to learn how to cook more organically, which is a little difficult when your kids are hungry NOW, but we're adapting.  I really miss canned biscuits, frozen pizza (they do have some here but not much), Stovetop stuffing mix, Libby's canned pumpkin, and Cool Whip/Reddi Whip.  Other foods I miss are brown sugar, ricotta cheese (can't figure out how to make lasagna), graham crackers, kraft mac & cheese, and shredded cheese.  I also cannot figure out how to get my floors clean.  The mops are not high-quality and you can't wash or replace the heads, and no Swiffer.  I miss my Shark Steam Mop, but not enough to shell out $200 for one here when they're only about $75 back home.  I'm getting the carpets cleaned on Thursday.   

Words in the US that have the letter 'z' in them have an 's' here.  Like 'realized' is spelled 'realised'.  And my spell check just underlined it.

The weather has been absolutely beautiful.  We eat lunch outside every day and have all the windows and doors open.  The humidity is very low, and it has only rained 2 times since we've been here.  I've heard the rainy season will start soon but they're quick and usually happen in the afternoon.  There are no screens on any of the windows so I'm not looking forward to the mosquitoes.

Miranda has had the past month off from school and she returns tomorrow.  I am hoping she will find some good friends like she had back home, it's hard to be the new kid and the only one with an 'accent'.  We are trying really hard to adapt here, but we had a setback a couple of weeks ago when we had to put Crissy down.  The vet said her cancer was a very aggressive type that she probably only had for about a month.  If it weren't such a long flight, I might have considered getting a dog here.  Jackson is running all over the place.  He thinks he's pretty cool that he can walk now.  He's a sneaky little boy, and his favorite things to do with his toys are to either put them in his mouth or hit stuff with them.  He will be 11 months tomorrow and I am busy planning his birthday party.

I've been noticing lately since it's been warmer out that a lot of kids don't wear shoes, and no one seems to care.  This weekend I saw bare feet walking into the movie theater, at the casino, and at church.  The park has several bare feet kiddos as well, and one day last week must have been 'naked day' as there were about 4 little girls ages 3-4 who were playing all over the park in their birthday suits while their moms sat on blankets chatting away.  When Miranda asked "why are they naked?", my only response was "I don't know."  It was a little awkward as there were little boys present.

I discovered BBC's version of "Dancing With the Stars" today, but it is called "Strictly Come Dancing."  It is the exact same set, songs, structure, etc.  Bruno and Len are judges alongside some people I don't know.  I also don't recognize any of the 'stars' or professional dancers, but it's still enjoyable to watch.  We hooked the computer up to the TV on Saturday and were able to watch College Game Day live on ESPN via our Slingbox in Olathe.

My dad arrives in 25 days, and yes, I'm counting down!
          

Tiny Cars are Awesome!

We are a 2-vehicle family again.  Our 'new' car is a 2004 Citroen C2.  It's bigger than a Smart Car but smaller than anything I've ever owned.  It fits in every parking space very easily.  Rusty is enjoying going into work early so he can be home early.  He still carpools once in awhile, but he can now go to World of Golf every day for lunch if he wants to, and I can go anywhere I want without having to call someone for a ride.

The hailstorm last week was certainly an interesting event.  I hadn't expected my lawn (or 'garden' as everyone calls it here) to ever be white.  We lost a couple of small palm tree branches and the patios were covered in debris and leaves.  Luckily my gardener was scheduled to come the next day so it all got cleaned up nicely.  

Last week I visited the Byanston Organic Market which reminded me of the Apple Festival I used to go to at Ward Meade Park in Topeka.  It was an outside venue with different booths set up where people were selling their hand-crafted goods.  I found a hand-carved wooden candle holder, a couple of ostrich-feather hair clips, and several other things I will have to go back for someday.  I also had the most delicious spinach-quiche I ever tasted.  The weather was absolutely glorious!  I was able to leave Miranda and Jackson at home with Anna so I could have a much-needed kid-free outing with friends.

Miranda is now a bike owner again, this time with a JD Bug Training 'Balance' Bike.  It does not have pedals, the seat is low enough for the child to reach the ground, and it helps train kids to balance so they will not need training wheels when they switch over to a regular bike.  She is improving every day although she rejected it at first.  These bikes have been around for 10 years, originating in Germany.  They are very popular here.  Jackson is walking all over the place.  He takes more and more steps every day, although he still prefers to crawl or zoom around in his walker.  Today he walked all the way across the room and looks so proud every time.  He has figured out how to open the washing machine door and his favorite spot is to sit in the big drawer under the TV that houses all his toys.

The bird that got stuck in our chimney yesterday made his way into our fireplace this afternoon.  He spent a very long time trying to fly in and pecking at the glass door.  After an hour or so, Rusty was able to rescue it with a pitcher and a newspaper.  The bird was pretty exhausted, but after releasing him outside, he flew away.   

Having the Flu Sucks

It's been a couple of weeks since my last post due to sickness that went through our house.  I blame Miranda's preschool, especially when she comes home telling me which kids were out sick and which ones were complaining about tummy aches all day.  So last weekend was spent with each of us taking our turn with the stomach flu.  We tried to take advantage of the nice weather this weekend to make up for it.  On Sunday we went to the Pretoria Zoo.  The drive there was quite scary as downtown Pretoria is not a nice place to be.  I have never been to Detroit, but I can imagine what the worst area would be, and that's what we drove through.    The zoo was ok, but since it is winter here (65 degrees), a lot of the animals were hiding inside their little homes and the vegetation was dry and dead.  We plan on going back this summer and renting a golf cart so we can see the zoo in it's entirety.    

I have found a new favorite place to be, and that is World of Golf.  You might be thinking, "I didn't know you played golf!"  I don't.  But I might start.  This place is every golfer's dream.  For only $55 a month, you get access to the entire club which includes a gym, restaurant, and several areas to practice all your golf swings.  There is a little 9-hole pitch-and-putt course, a putting green, a chipping area, and a bunker area.  There might be even more that we don't know about.  Of course there are plenty of tees to practice with whichever club you desire, with an unlimited supply of golf balls piled in a pyramid next to each tee.  There are also nice covered wooden bench swings which is where I sit, breathe in the non-humid air, look at the beautiful blue sky and gaze at palm trees.  Miranda plays in the kiddie area and Jackson eats cereal while sitting in his stroller.  It is paradise.

I do not understand the people in charge of electrical things here.  The outlets are not only few and far-between, but they don't exist in the bathrooms.  You also have to flip a switch to turn them on.  You'd think that if you bought an electrical item at the store in Africa, for example, a hair dryer, that you could take it home and plug it in at your Africa house.  Nope.  You need an adapter.  Some stuff has 3 prongs, some have 2.  The ones that have 2 prongs, some are round, some are oval, and some have a hexagon shape.

I went to Super Spar again last week and scored big time.  They will import American items, and you can also request things, but it's hit-or-miss on what they have.  I have been pretty good at accepting the things I cannot have, but I'll admit I spent way too much on luxuries.  My Mrs. Butterworth's syrup was $7, and Froot Loops with marshmallows was $8.  A&W Root Beet was $1.30 a can, and a box of fruit snacks was $6.  The store is not down the street so I do not go very often.  At the other grocery store I usually go to (Pick N Pay), I found mint-flavored canned peas.  I bought one, but have yet to taste it.  

Miranda still enjoys preschool, but is now on winter break until September 5th.  Poor thing spent 8 hours throwing up last Saturday, but by dinnertime she was back to normal.  I wish I could bounce back that fast!  We went to our next door neighbor's 3rd birthday party on Friday and she spent the whole time playing with a girl from her class.  After singing the traditional "Happy Birthday" song, everyone does the "hip-hip-hooray" cheer three times.  They also do not open gifts at parties which isn't too bad of an idea.  Jackson seems to finally be over his cold.  Two weeks ago he got a fever and wouldn't eat or drink, so I took him to the doctor and he was given antibiotics for an ear infection.  I think we're all healthy now, hopefully we'll stay that way for awhile.  Rusty took a 4-day weekend because today is a holiday.  It's "Women's Day" which commemorates the national march of women in 1956 to petition against legislation that required African persons to carry the "pass", special identification documents which curtailed an African's freedom of movement during the apartheid era.

We have booked my dad on a flight to come visit on the first of October for 20 days.  We're only here for 2 years so if you've ever desired to see South Africa, you will have a free place to stay!  

I Have a Nice Accent

Rusty has decided to buy a car so I'm not stuck at home when he has the company car.  He's hoping to find a tiny one for under $10k that we will be able to sell before we leave.  If Miranda's preschool wasn't a 30 minute hike, it wouldn't be a big deal.  But I've been told the rainy season will start in September.  I have met a couple of my neighbors.  The family right next door moved into the estate a few months ago and have a son who is 3, and a daughter who is a week younger than Jackson.  They have lived here their whole life, so they will be a great resource of which local activities to do.  They also have two giant dogs that I want to play with.  The other neighbor lives just down the street and has two boys, one looks to be around one, the other is in Miranda's preschool class.  She has helped me get her to school on the days I'm without a vehicle.  They also have a dog, a tiny little dachshund puppy, that I can't wait to cuddle.  We saw a 9-month-old black standard poodle at the park yesterday.  She wasn't as friendly as Crissy.  I miss my dogs.


We have to go to the store a lot because you can only buy milk in 2 liter size which is about 1/2 gallon, and it expires quickly so you can't stock up.  Although there is something called 'long life' milk that you can put in the back of your pantry and it will be fresh for about 6 months or so.  Once opened, you have to refrigerate it and use within a few days.  But it's nice to have in case you run out and can't make it to the store.  The loaves of bread are really small, about half the size of a loaf of Iron Kids.  They also get moldy quickly but I manage to go through 2 loaves before they go bad.  They're also really crumbly, I keep trying different kinds but it doesn't seem to matter.  I have a couple loaves in the freezer just in case.  That is one thing that I really don't like here: you can't go shopping in the evening.  You cannot run errands after work because all the stores are closed.  The weekends are bad too because the stores close super early.  Car dealerships are the worst because they close around 1pm on Saturdays, and they aren't open on Sundays.  I don't know when people buy stuff here.  I have yet to do my grocery shopping online, but it will be happening very soon.

Our trash pickup company is called "Piki Tup".  Get it?  They're very literal here when naming stores/companies.  I found a new chiropractor here in the estate that I can actually walk to if I need to.  Her sessions cost the same as my chiropractor at home, but instead of just coming in for an adjustment and being worked on for about 5 minutes, she spends an entire hour on me.  It's amazing.  I'm finding that you can pretty much hire people to do anything for you.  There are dog-washing compaines who will come to your house with a truck and will wash/groom your dogs right there in your driveway. 

I have been to my gym a couple of times now, but I'm not impressed - yet.  The registration process has been quite a headache, but I think I finally have all the paperwork complete.  I took what was supposed to be a hip-hop aerobics type class, but it was very elementary compared to Jazzercise.  As I was doing my initial orientation today, I was told I have a very nice accent.  Not used to being the one with the acccent, I notice I turn heads when I'm out in public, just like I would turn around to see who was speaking in a foreign accent if I were at home.  I'm anxious to use the pool, I bought everything I need this weekend, including a nice Speedo costume.  Yes, a swimsuit is called a costume.  So what do they call a Halloween-type costume?  A costume.

The gas strike is still going on, but we have managed to fill up the car.  Right now the fuel price is R9.76/litre.  After converting that to gallons and figuring out rand to dollar, that comes to about $5.36/gallon.  The price of fuel is the same at every petrol station, you can't run around town looking for somewhere that has it 3 cents cheaper.  The price is set by the government.  The driving age here is 17, but that's only for a permit, you can't get a full license until 18.  When you first get a license, you have to drive with a big red 'L' on the back window of your car for a year. 

I joined a knitting group called "Hip to be Square".  We are part of the 'Knit-a-Square' charity that knits/crochets squares for South African orphans and child AIDS victims.  The squares are sent down the road to another group who sews them together to make blankets.  The more skilled knitters will make hats or edging on fleece blankets.  I have made a nice start on my first square and hope to have it completed before our August meeting.     

Miranda still likes preschool, but gets sad when the bigger kids won't let her play with them in the sandbox.  There is one group of kids that are older than her, but they will 'graduate' in November and then Miranda will be in the oldest class.  But she likes her teacher and the other kids in her class.  She got to go to a princess-themed birthday party on Saturday with other kids of Rusty's co-workers.  She dressed as Snow White, and the 'real' Snow White was there, as well as Cinderella.  She has been talking about it constantly and planning her own birthday party that won't happen until March.    Jackson started taking his first few steps last week, but he still prefers to crawl because it is much faster.  He is still suffering from a cold, and today he has a fever.  He was checked out at the doctor on Saturday, and they think he might be teething again.  He was supposed to get his measles vaccine, but now we're going to wait until he's healthy. 

The weather has been very nice lately, I've only had to wear 1-2 layers of long sleeved shirts instead of 3, and I actually wore short sleeves one day last week.  Today it is very windy and cloudy, it might actualy rain.  It has only rained once since we've been here.  There is a lof of field burning and it creates a yucky yellow haze that I think may be causing my asthma to act up.  The rain would sure be helpful right about now!

I've been baking a lot of different breads lately because Jackson likes them so much, and the oven warms up my kitchen.  So far I've done banana, apple, butternut, lemon, and banana/orange.  I also baked some cookies using the chocolate chips I found at a baking store and the Nestle recipe.  They turned out perfect.  And since I can't find brown sugar, I used treacle sugar, and it worked out just fine!  The No-Bake cookies were good too.  My next goal is to find a good vanilla cake recipe.   

No Country Music

We have now been here for 2 months, and one month in this house.  The weather has been a little warmer so we've been trying to use the grill outside more.  With the gas strike, we're unable to use the nice gas grill, so we've been using charcoal.  We have 3 grills on our patio: the gas one, a traditional round Weber (pronounced wee-ber), and the big one built into the patio with a chimney.  We haven't used that one yet.  There's also a petrol strike that started on Monday, meaning the trucks that bring fuel to the gas stations are on strike so a lot of places are running out.  We've been carpooling as much as possible and hoping it's over soon.

I went to Super Spar again last week and was able to score Crisco sticks, so I am saving them to grease up my pans when I bake cakes.  I also went to a baking store and they actually rent licensed character cake pans.  What a great idea!  Instead of paying $20 for a pan I'll probably only use once, I can rent it for $3. 

Miranda started preschool last week and really likes it.  She attends five days a week for 4 hours each day.  I drop her off around 8:30am, but I can bring her there as early as 7:15am, and if I pay extra, I can leave her there through lunch and even nap time, but I get her at 12:30pm so we can eat at home.  She gets to bring her own snack, and last week the topic in her classroom was "space."  She will get the entire month of August off for 'winter term break.'  Both kids have colds right now, and I think I'm catching it. 

We attended a Catholic church on Saturday evening and I was surprised at how different it was.  The structure of the mass was the same, but all of the prayers and responses were worded just a little different so I had troubles participating.  The only prayer that was the same was The Lord's Prayer.  The hymnal didn't have any notes, and I didn't recognize any of the songs, so singing was difficult as well.  The parish was having a hoedown after mass and their reception hall was decked out in checkered tablecloths, haybales, and youths in coyboy hats, boots, flannel shirts and jeans.  We were having friends over for dinner, otherwise I would have had to show them a thing or two on the dance floor.  The timing of that was ironic because I had just noticed a couple of days before that country music does not exist here.  I haven't heard a single song in two months.  I'm not a big fan, but you do hear a song now and then on the radio back home on the non-country stations, so I was really craving it.  Good thing we moved our music library onto our laptop before we moved.     

Harry Potter is not as popular here as it is back home.  The movie actually came out on Wednesday morning, but with two kids and work, we purchased our tickets for Sunday.  There was a nice crowd, but plenty of open seats.  Most of the previews were for American films, but there was one for a comedy that was clearly foreign.  The audience was roaring with laughter at the smallest joke, like the waitress accidentally pouring tea in a man's lap.  That movie would last probably a day in the states.

I joined a local gym yesterday.  It's really big and new, has a lot of equipment and a pool, and provides a lot of different classes that are all included in the price like yoga, pilates, spinning, step, and aerobics.  My membership is from 8-4 (which is the only time I have to go anyways) and unfortunately the Zumba classes are in the evenings.  The daycare is really nice and has different areas for different ages.  They actually have a kid's spinning class with little stationary bikes.  It also includes a little gym with basketball hoops and a rock climbing wall, computers, a tv playing movies, and Wii Fit.  I hope I can motivate myself to go!

Longest. Winter. Ever.

I hope everyone enjoyed Independence Day!  You can't tell people here "It's the 4th of July!" because to them, that's just what it is, the fourth day of July.  We celebrated a couple of days before with about 50 Americans from Rusty's work.  Very red, white, and blue with imported KC BBQ and lots of potluck sides and desserts. We even had sparklers!   I'm glad I purchased our matching Old Navy flag tees right before we moved. 
I've joined a book club with some of the wives here, I'm finding I have a lot more time to read.  I'm also going to joing a knitting group and it's involved in 'knit-a-square' to make blankets for children in need.  I've never knitted before, but I'm anxious to learn.  Miranda is at her first day of preschool.  She will attend five days a week for 4 hours or so each day.  I'm not sure how I'm going to get her to and from there on the days I don't have a car as it's about a 30 minute walk one way, all downhill.  That means it's all uphill on the way home.  And the rainy season will begin in a couple of months.  She will have the entire month of August off for 'winter break'. 

On Saturday we went to the Monte Casino because there is a bird sanctuary we wanted to check out.  It was a lot bigger than we expected with a bird show included in the price, which came to about $6/person.  Jackson fell asleep during the show and as people absolutely love babies here, I came back from taking Miranda to the 'toilets' to find a bright pink lipstick stain on the top of his head.  We ate lunch in the casino food court at KFC which isn't as greasy as back home, but they do not sell the homestyle biscuits with the butter packets and honey.  They have actual little loaves of bread that taste like Wonder-bread rolls.  On the way out we stopped in the 'American' souvenir shop with a sign that read "Real Imported US Candy!".  Inside it was full of cowboy boots and hats, cowboy-type shirts with fringe, lighters, etc.  On a shelf was a jug of Louisburg Apple Cider.  I don't know how much it cost or how long it had been there, I just thought it was interesting that this was the stereotype of all of the United States.     

The owners of our house are incredibly nice people.  The under-floor heaters in the master bedroom are broken, making the room very cold.  So they called me and asked if I wanted them to buy us another oil-heater.  I of course said yes and that I was going to pick up a heated blanket on Saturday, so they offered to purchase one for us.  Within an hour, they both were delivered to my house.  Rusty couldn't stand not knowing exactly what was wrong and if the heaters were on the same circuit, etc., so he tried to fix it.  He ended up re-wiring it after he found out that they were on separate circuits, just used the same switch, and realizing that the bathroom heater was just fine.  So now the floors in the bedroom are still ice-cold, but the bathroom is working again.

We visited a church yesterday with three other families.  We thought it was Methodist but ended up being a non-denominational modern service.  The band was very impressive and the church was brand-new.  Miranda and Jackson each had classrooms to go to with age-appropriate activities.  There are a lot of different types of churches here so our plan is to visit as many as we can to find the one that suits us best.  I've heard there's a Catholic church that has a Zulu service on Sunday afternoon.  Sounds interesting! 

I have met so many nice people here and it's wonderful to have a great group of wives to help with the homesickness.  We get together with other families every weekend and I'm trying to be as involved as I can.  Miranda is finally getting some structured social interaction in preschool, so now I need to find an activity to do with Jackson.  He turned 9 months last week and is a very fast crawler.  After pulling himself up to a standing position, he will let go and can stand unassisted for about 10 seconds.  I'm sure he'll be walking soon!  He still likes to fall over and bump his head on furniture and walls, so he has not been bruise-free since we've been here.  He's currently sporting another fat lip after cutting it on a drawer handle last night.  He is officially done with mushy baby food, so he eats whatever I make for dinner.  He really likes meatlof, chicken, and any kind of bread that I make.  Still practicing using my oven, I need to start practicing my decorating so I'm ready for Jackson's first birthday in a few months.   

I found Pop-Tarts and Mrs. Butterworth's Pancake Mix at Super-Spar yesterday!  Still looking for syrup and Kraft Mac & Cheese, but it's hit-or-miss.  I'm learning to accept the things I cannot have, knowing it will all be there when I get home.   

Summer starts the first of September and I've heard it's a little more refreshing than summer in Kansas right now.  I'm ready for the days to be longer and to not wear jeans and slippers and 3 layers of long-sleeved shirts and sweaters and scarves every day, in my house, sitting on the couch.  9 months of winter is too long!  It was weird watching the women's World Cup live last night, being in the same time zone as Germany where they were playing, yet it was sunny and summer there, and winter and pitch-black here.  I'm craving hot-chocolate.  Yes, they have it here.

Having a Maid is Pretty Awesome

We've been in our house for 2 weeks now and are starting to figure things out.  I still do not like my oven because I haven't quite figured out how to bake evenly.  But my from-scratch chocolate cake turned out pretty well and my first attempt at scratch-lemon bars was ok, even though they were a little over-done.  Today I made lemon bread, but for some reason everything is turning out crispy on the outside, but it might be ok.  Since the lemons on our tree are taking a really long time to ripen, I had to steal a few from one of my friend's tree.  I really miss sticks of butter and margarine with the measurements on the paper.  I had no idea what a luxury that is. 

I'm enjoying having a maid in my house on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  She works at another house M-W-F but lives here so we see her from time to time.  She takes care of all the cleaning, including laundry.  But the washer is tiny and the dryer is slow so I wash my own clothes on the days she is not here, do a load of the kid's stuff on the weekend, and a couple loads of towels.  She takes care of all the sheets and kid's laundry on the days she is here, and washes and irons all of Rusty's clothes.  I clean the kitchen floor once on the weekend because it gets pretty gross, but other than that, Anna gets it done.

We went to a couple of playgrounds in the estate this weekend, and the equipment reminds me of stuff I used to play on when I was a kid.  It is nothing like all the required safety plastic stuff that are in all the parks and schools at home.  Here, it's definitely play-at-your-own risk (even though there aren't any signs to realease the estate from liability like you'd see in the US).  But the way people see it here, if you get hurt, you were probably doing something you shouldn't have been doing anyways.

Miranda will be starting preschool next Monday, but will only go for a few weeks before she'll have the whole month of August off for winter-term break.  They have year-round school here and the term runs January-December.  It is located here in the estate but is about a 30-minute walk all down-hill, which means it's all up-hill on the way home.  I have the car 3 days during the week, sometimes 4, so we'll either walk or carpool or take the day off on the days I'm without a vehicle. 

Jackson decided last week that he does not like mashed-up baby food.  Tried several different kinds you buy in the jar, even ones he usually loves, but apparenly he's a big boy now.  Friday for dinner we went to Spur (yes, again) and he shared Miranda's grilled cheese and french fries (although here it's called "toasted cheese" and "chips"). 

We watched some of the women's World Cup this weekend and get to see it live on TV since we're in the same time zone as Germany.  Another cold front moved in and it's cold in here again.  When I say cold, I mean the high this week is 62 with a low of 39.  But without central heating in the house, it can get chilly.  Especially when our under-floor heaters in our bedroom keep tripping the circuit breaker so we had to turn them off.  Hopefully we'll get that fixed soon!  But I'll probably buy another sweater this week.  I can't believe I didn't pack any of my sweatshirts!  The air is so dry that I had to put lotion by every sink in the house.  Miranda's hair is so frizzy and I can't seem to find a good hair gel for her, and my hair goes flat by 4pm.  I guess I need to experiment with some local products. 

I'm going to make mashed sweet potatoes to go with our pork chops tonight, but they're just potatoes that have a sweeter flavour to them.  Haven't seen actual 'orange' sweet potatoes here.  Most of the meats and eggs are organic.  The labels say "grass-fed" or "free-range" but you don't have to pay extra like you do back home, that's just the way things are here. 

Cheers!

 

Here Come the Bugs

We've been in our house for a week now, and the bugs have arrived.  There are tiny black ants all over, mostly in the bathrooms, although most of them are dead because the owner had the house sprayed just before we moved in.  And we have these gross cockroach-looking bugs everywhere, but most of them die really fast too.  Miranda had an unfortunate incident with one this morning, she absolutely freaked out and ran around screaming like her entire body was on fire.  I wish I'd had the camera rolling.  Jackson puts everything in his mouth so I have to do a quick sweep a couple of times a day.     

There were a couple of really cold days last week where the house got down into the 50s.  I spent a lot of time on the floor because it is heated.  It was windy, too, and the air seems to blow right through the roof since there is no insulation.  Silly me didn't pack any sweatshirts and all the ones here look like they came from 1992, so I have increased my sweater collection.  That seems to be the clothing trend for the ladies here: Long sweaters, scarves, tight pants, and boots.  Can't seem to find any shoes bigger than an 8 so far, but I'm still looking.   

Housing codes are very different here.  There are no outlets or light switches in any of the bathrooms, so you have to turn on the light outside the door and dry your hair in your bedroom.  There are also no smoke detectors.  Seems odd with a thatch roof and all, but there are several fire extinguishers strategically placed around the house.  But we will be installing some soon.  The walls are all concrete and brick so the electrical wires are in weird places.  The light switches are very interesting as there is no rhyme or reason to them.  We still can't figure out what some of them do and it took a whole week to find out which ones turned on the lights by the front door. 

I am still having a lot of trouble communicating with the locals.  As much as I try to tell them I cannot understand what they are trying to say, they just keep repeating themselves without slowing down or enunciating.  Sometimes I just have to walk away.  I think next time I'll start saying all the Spanish words I know and see how they like it.      

We're Finally in a House!

Been slightly busy since the last post, I hope to update my blog more so I don't forget anything.  Sunday (the 12th) we went to an open-air market on top of yet another mall.  There are so many malls here I can't keep them straight, plus all the outdoor shopping areas.  The market is only set up on Sundays, and it's basically a craft fair, so I was in heaven.  I will be spending a fortune there one of these days.  There was so much hand-carved, hand-painted authentic items, whoever comes to visit will get to go.  I purchased three beautiful sarongs and was able to bargain my way down from R240 to R180, which is about $26.

The next week was the last week in the apartment, but it was still tough as I was without a car, not that I want to drive anywhere anyways.  We met with the owners of the house we're renting on Friday and they told us we could move in on Saturday instead of Monday like the contract stated.  They are two extremely nice and easy-going people.  The wife, Wendy, said she was sad to leave her home.  They are renting a smaller place about 6km away so they are available if we need anything.  They also have a 'game ranch' which is about a 3-hour drive east of here.  It's a much bigger home than this one and they said they only live here Monday-Thursday and head out to the ranch on the weekends. 
Moving is never fun and I finally got everything unpacked today, thanks to our maid, Anna.  She lives here in a little apartment attached to the outside of the house and works in the house Tuesdays and Thursdays.  She does all the cleaning and laundry, although I'm going to wash my own clothes on the days she's not here until I get used to it all.  Right now she's ironing Rusty's work shirts and pants.  Hope he doesn't get too used to that because it won't be happening when we return home in 2 years.  The gardener arrived this morning and has been doing yard work all day; he works on Tuesdays.  We provide them with bread, frozen chicken, milk, and tea for their lunch; Anna fixes her own and the gardener's.  She was shocked when I told her I wasn't used to someone else doing things for me.  I had to explain that I do all the cleaning and washing, etc. at my home.  Miranda really likes her and follows her around while she cleans, trying to help.  Again, I had to explain that at home she helps me clean and do the laundry. 

It's winter here so the days are pretty nice, but it's chilly at night.  We have space heaters and the floors are heated so it's not too bad.  I was enjoying the longer days back home and then get here to shorter days.  But today is the shortest day of the year so it's all uphill from here.  Summer begins in September. 

I haven't driven too much, but I did go out for the first time today BY MYSELF!!!  There's a small Pick 'n Pay grocery store across the street and a toy store.  I think I did pretty well, but it was still scary.  This neighborhood is gated and you have to get through security with a card or a code, then you have to find your house.  I think there are about 1,000 homes here.  Our yard backs up to another gated community, but we're completely surrounded by trees and shrubs that I feel very secluded.  I've counted about 4 different types of palm trees in our yard so far.  The lemon tree has a couple dozen green lemons that should be ripe in about a week or so.  Next to it is an open area that's all ready for my garden this spring.  Graham, the owner, told us to just go buy the plants and the gardener will take care of it.  But taking care of it is half the fun! 

Everything is so different and it's going to take some time getting used to it all.  Re/Max sent us a nice 'welcome' gift basket last night with some cappucino packets and glass mugs, some liquor that tastes like fruity Bailey's, and some stuffed animals, pink marshmallows, and princess wands that Miranda has claimed.  I had to call Rusty when they arrived because I couldn't figure out how to open the front door and gate.  Whoops.  Oh, and Betty Crocker cake mixes are $6/ea so I guess I'll be making mine from scratch for awhile.

Book your flight, we're ready for visitors! ;-)

Healthcare is Cheap!(er)

This week was pretty uneventful, until today.  Wednesday and Thursday were pretty chilly, but Friday was nice, and today was glorious!  Yet most people are wearing sweaters and jackets, and the random people at the intersections are selling hats and gloves and ear muffs.  After being in pain all day yesterday I decided I needed to go to the doctor today and get a perscription for mastitis.  I called two clinics; one wouldn't answer the phone, and the other started taking walk-ins after 2pm.  So I took my chances and showed up at the place where they wouldn't answer the phone because several co-workers recommended it.  I hardly had to wait, and the pharmacy was just below it.  We have to pay full-price up front and then get reimbursed by our insurance company, so one appointment + 3 filled perscriptions = $110.  Unbelievable.  We may not even bother filing the claim. 

Afterwards we went to brunch at Mugg & Bean which has it's own child play area.  There was a cookie-making station, a sandy area, ball pit, blow-up trampoline, jungle gym and slides, and a petting zoo with rabbits and guinea pigs.  There were also some random geese and a couple of roosters walking around the eating area (outside).  I ordered a pancake (flapjack) for Miranda, but it was located in the 'dessert' section of the menu.  Waffles are also a dessert here.  And the "All American" breakfast combo included Boston baked beans, toast, 2 eggs, french fries, 'bacon' (ham), sausage, and a fried tomato.

We went to "Spar" today which is another grocery store, but you can find a few more 'American' items there.  I paid $3 each for canned cream soups you use for baking.  But a whole fresh pineapple was $1.  Still can't find fine brown sugar, so we bought molassas and made some ourselves.  Rusty mixed it for about 10 minutes until it was completely blended.  I will be testing it this week with a favorite cookie recipe.

We bought a scale today and Jackson is now 18.8 lbs.; he turned 8 months on Monday.  He crawls super-fast and pulls himself up on everything.  This morning he decided to slip on the condensation on the concrete windowsill and bust his lip.  I didn't notice how bad it was until I saw the blood on my shoulder.  Apparently his 2 bottom teeth chomped his top lip!  But the bleeding stopped and now it's just a bit swollen.  Tonight we had fun playing Uno and Tumblin' Monkeys that we bought at Toys R Us.  We may attempt an open-air market tomorrow so I'll have to put my 'bargaining' face on.          

We Have a House!

We finally got a signed contract for a house on Monday, and we get to move in on the 20th.  It is about 4,000 sq ft, 3 bedrooms, 3 bath.  There's a little wading pool in the backyard and a pool table inside.  It's very modern and cozy.  The roof is thatch and it looks a lot like a vacation home.  I'm excited to have a dishwasher again, although I'm getting used to hand-washing three times a day.  I think about my great-grandma having to wash dishes for her family of 13, and then my grandma with her family of 7.  I'm also getting used to not having a garbage disposal which was a pretty easy transition. 

I still can't find grape jam, which is crazy with all the wineries in the area, so I've substituted with blackcurrant.  Haven't found fine brown sugar either, just treacle sugar which is the same, only bigger crystals and a little stronger molassas flavor.  We've been eating frozen green beans which are a little rubbery after boiling, and then we found canned ones.  I was excited until I looked at the price: $35 for a 12-pack.  Couldn't convince myself to buy them.  But avacados are super cheap so we may be having a lot of guacamole dip here.  I attempted to bake some homemade bread and it seemed to rise a lot more than I'm used to.  Using a convection oven with degrees celsius is still challenging me. 

There are birds here called Hadedas whose call sounds like a crying baby.  I saw a little green bird yesterday that reminded me of a canary.  There's a small river and a bunch of trees behind our apartment, and I saw what looked like 2 little black pigs running around.  We had our first thunderstorm last night and into the morning, and when it rains, it RAINS! 

Wearing jammies out to dinner is acceptable.

We have officially been here for 2 weeks.  I still have not driven, but that will change tomorrow.  The first time we were in the car, I was on the 'driver's side' which of course is the passenger side here, Miranda asked, "hey, where's that spinning-wheel thingy?"  I had to explain that daddy was driving, the steering wheel is on the other side.  It took a bit for that to sink in.

We are so very close to finally having a house to move into, we're just waiting for a few more signatures on the lease.  Move-in date is set for the 20th so that means 2 more weeks in this apartment.  Even though most places here are very child-friendly, more so than in the US, this 'Estate' complex is not.  No playground, no bathtubs, and it's too cold to go swimming.  Clearly we're all going a little stir-crazy.  So we headed out to Nelson Mandela Square tonight for dinner.  After walking the mall and looking at menus posted outside the resturants, I decided it was all a little too fancy and overwhelming, so back to Spur for the third time.  Miranda really needed to release some energy and I knew that would be a good place to do it.  Friday night must be THE night to go, and we have now realized that it is acceptable to bring your child in their pajamas, slippers, and bath robe to the restaurant as about 3/4 of all the kids were dressed this way.  There is a smoking area in the restaurant, it is a little room with about 7 booths, completely sealed with glass walls.  I can't imagine what it must smell like in there.

Yes, Africa Has Happy Meals

So we may have found a house, just waiting for the owner to sign the contract.  I'm not looking forward to spending the next 3 weeks in this apartment but if there's a light at the end of the tunnel, then I can handle it.  Someone has a dog which is probably really hoarse today because it was barking for at least an hour straight last night.  Lovely.  One of the houses we looked at was almost 7,000 square feet and Miranda had such a good time chasing the dog around that the owner said we could keep him there if we wanted to.  It also had a cat which doesn't go well with Rusty's allergies.  But there is no hvac in any of the homes here, just room air-conditioners (if you're lucky) and under-floor heating. 

We ate at an American-themed restaurant called "Spur" a couple of times.  Their menu is geared towards the US, the decor is Native American.  Miranda had grilled cheese, I ordered from the section that stated "enough for two" thinking that I would have leftovers.  Nope.  It was chicken quesidillas, a medium-sized tortilla cut into fourths, just the perfect size for my dinner but too small for a second meal.  They had a play area with 'child-minders' so we could hang out at the table while Miranda ran around.  The second Spar we visitied was at the casino which was similar to Ameristar in KC.  It was nice because the shops were open which usually are closed by 6:00pm every night.  Makes it impossible to run errands after Rusty gets home from work. 

The language barrier is a bit frustrating for me with the locals.  They speak so fast and I cannot understand them most of the time.  You have to be very blunt and forward and somewhat demanding when asking for something which I am not very good at yet.  I wonder if it's just as hard for them to understand me.  Grocery shopping is still interesting and time consuming because I'm not quite sure what some things are.  Luckily I ran into another US citizen who has lived here for 2 years and she was able to guide me through the baking aisle.  Still getting used to degrees celsius and 24-hour time. 

The Lion Park on Sunday was a fun experience.  It was not overly crowded and we happened to show up on the day where they let you watch them feed the animals.  We had a very close spot in the lion area, maybe a little too close for comfort, and watched as a truck full of what looked like zebra legs drove through with a man in the back throwing them out as the lions chased after them.  Then we got to drive through the rest of the park with cheetas and other animals.  I liked the cub area where you could pay to pet them.  They were like dog-sized kittens and would sometimes nip at your hands.  You could also feed the giraffes but Miranda didn't want to get too close.  Back at the food area they had a braii (BBQ) buffet with lots of grilled goodies.  It was about a 30 minute drive from our apartment and I got to see a lot of Africa scenery.  We passed by a very large settlement where the poorest of the poor live.  It was like a giant shanty-town with 'homes' made out of whatever people could scrap together.  I would guess over 15,000 people live in there and can't even imagine what it must be like.

Today I went to a Sam's Club-like store with a friend and then out to lunch at McDonald's.  Miranda got a McNuggets Happy Meal with a choice of corn or fries and a side of sweet and sour sauce for dipping.  For my extra-value meal I got the medium fries and drink which is equivalent to a small in the US, and there is no super-size here.  Everything tasted the same except the fries seem to have less sugar and salt on them and weren't as greasy.  The Sprite was cold even though I forgot to ask for it with ice.  My bad.

I still do not have a phone, only Skype, but hopefully that will change this week.  My next adventure will be attempting to drive.  I haven't taken the required course yet, but I want to practice first.

Apparently today was 'cold'

Today's front-page headline for the local newspaper: "There Used To Be A City Here".  It was an article and picture of Joplin, MO.

Today I went out with the 'Stepping South' relocation specialist to look at some houses.  I wore jeans and a t-shirt because it was about 65 degrees and very refreshing.  Everyone else had on sweaters and kept asking me 'aren't you freezing?' and telling me to go put on a jacket.  I had to explain what a typical winter was like in Kansas.  The houses were either too small or had cats which won't work with Rusty's allergies.  They all have teeny-tiny washing machines (big enough to wash 2 bath towels and wash cloths) and some don't have dryers. We have one more to look at tomorrow, keeping my fingers crossed! We still don't have a phone which is irritating because I can't get a hold of Rusty if I need to, and vice versa.  A phone call would have helped this morning when I overslept until 9:25 and was being picked up at 9:30.  Not quite over the jet-lag, Miranda was still awake at 11:30 last night and I was up until 1:30. So frustrating!

I looked like a stupid American at the front office today when I kept pulling on the door to get in and they had to tell me to push.  This would be unacceptable at home due to fire codes.  Africa lingo: when you say 'thank-you', the reply you get is 'pleasure'.

The TV censors are interesting.  Watched the 'Sex and the City' movie last night and they silenced every 'F'-bomb and 'God' (as in 'oh my ---!).  But every 'sh*t' was heard and all nudity was shown.  Commercials are also very limited so programs don't usually start on the hour or half-hour because a 30-minute show is actually only 22 minutes or so.  Wish I didn't have to miss the 'Dancing With the Stars' finale tonight!

We have arrived!

We made it to South Africa!  The flights went smoothly, except for our lack of sleep trying to keep Jackson quiet. I do not recommend flying 15 straight hours with a baby. We had roomy first-class seats that I will hopefully get to enjoy on our return trip. Miranda had a great time watching Disney movies and playing her Nintendo DS. We left KC at 3pm and arrived in Atlanta just under 2 hours later. We left Atlanta at 7pm and landed in Johannesburg at 10:30am (5:30pm South Africa time). When we arrived, we got all our luggage, and had 3 people pushing 4 carts with all our stuff, then a large taxi with a trailer took us, our 6 pieces of carry-on luggage, 5 checked bags and 8 cardboard moving boxes to our temporary extended-stay.  It's a nice furnished 2 bed/2 bath apartment with no heaters so we quickly purchased an oil one to put in the dining room which is where Jackson is sleeping.  Miranda is excited to have a tv in her room. 

The first night was challenging as Jackson decided to death-scream from 2-3am. The day was spent in a jet-lag cloud.  We made our way to the local 'Pick N Pay Hyper' which is like a super Walmart; it has a little bit of everything.  Things have different names over here so it takes awhile to figure out exactly what you want.  Don't ask for a napkin, it's a 'serviette'. After much-needed naps, we headed out to dinner at Papacinos, which is a large family-friendly Italian-style restaurant. Miranda got to go to a special kitchen and make her own pizza. I had a flatbread pizza with chicken & mayo, feta cheese, and avacado slices. It was so good!  There is a large playground outside where the 'child-minders' will watch your kids while you eat dinner. Genius! The evening was spent Skyping family.  We are 7 hours ahead of KS time.

Today is Sunday and the night went much better. The jet-lag cloud is beginning to dissapate but I found myself wide awake from 4-6am. We had a nice lunch and visit with one of Rusty's co-workers and his family.  It makes me anxious to get into a house. We went back to the Pick N Pay to pick up a few more things and it was much less crowded, since we showed up 20 minutes before closing time at 4pm. Everything closes early here except for restaurants and movie theaters, so we won't be running errands in the evenings during the week as Rusty will be putting in 10-hour days. I have my international driver's license, but have not driven on the streets yet.  I'm not that anxious to head out on my own, have never driven on the left side before, and the other drivers are a little scary. Plus, people try to sell you things at the major intersections, and sometimes the street lights (I mean 'robots') aren't working.  I am very happy we decided to bring our carseats from home as there are no child-restraint laws here and it is difficult to find a proper carseat.  

It is almost winter here, so the sun is set by 6pm and it projects to the north side of buildings instead of the south. But, the winter weather is lovely; the high was about 65 today with no humidity and clear blue skies. Haven't ran into any crazy bugs yet, but I'm sure it will happen soon since the homes here do not have screens on any of the windows.  I will be heading out Tuesday with our relocation specialist to look for a house. We are hoping to be out of our extended-stay very soon!